A long way from home
by Phanfobtrash
Summary: The Starkids were just having a fun time at Lauren and Jamie's apartment, but when someone goes missing, everything goes to shit. Warning- semi-graphic descriptions of violence, swearing and other dark themes. Pairings- Walkpez, Beredith, and Jomie
1. Chapter 1- fun and games

**Hi, this is my first starkid story on here! I really hope you like it! I know it's short, but that's because this is really just an intro chapter. I'll try to update as much as possible!**

**Chapter 1- fun and games**

It was a normal day like any other, Lauren Lopez, Jamie Lynn Beatty, Joe Walker, Meredith Stepien, Brian Holden, Brian Rosenthal, Joey Ritcher and Dylan Saunders were all hanging out at Lauren and Jamie's apartment. Joe was in the process of finishing everybody's lunch for them. Jamie looked at him in shock, "How on earth do you manage to eat so much!?" Joe just shrugged and continued shoving food into his mouth. Lauren returned from the kitchen and sat on the couch. "So what do you guys want to do?" Everyone shrugged. That day had been more of a lazy day, they had a glee marathon, everyone cheering every time they saw Darren. It was so weird seeing him on TV like that. After a while though, everyone was getting tired of the recycled plot lines and cheerful singing. Dylan suggested that they play a game of poker. No one had any money so they just played strip poker. Before they started Lauren ran into her room. She came back wearing 3 sweaters, a winter coat, 2 pairs of socks, gloves, a winter hat and 3 baseball caps, and a pair of shorts over her pants. "Lo, I don't think that's allowed." Meredith looked skeptical. "Come on! You all know I'm a terrible liar, even with all of this I'll still be the first one naked!" Everyone just shrugged in agreement, it was true, despite being a great actress, Lauren couldn't bluff to save her life. So the game began. Lauren, Jamie and Brian R. were the worst. After a few rounds, Jamie had lost both her socks, her shirt and the hat she was wearing. Lauren had lost her jacket and all her sweaters, plus two hats and a glove. Brian R. was already in only his underwear. Dylan, Joe and Brian H. were all still fully clothed. Meredith, and Joey had only lost two articles of clothing each. Of course Dylan ended up winning, he was by far the best poker player out of the group. Lauren laughed and shoved Dylan playfully, "Now I know why you wanted to play, because you would obviously win!" Dylan laughed and picked her up over his shoulder. "Gee Lo, I have no idea how you figured that out!" Lauren continued to hit Dylan's back until he dropped her down on the couch. After everything calmed down, Dylan gave everyone back almost all their stuff. He kept one of Lauren's baseball caps. When Lauren protested he just held the hat out of her reach until she gave up. They had so much fun they didn't even realize how late it had gotten. Lauren was sitting in Joe's lap when she rubbed her eyes and yawned. Looking at the clock she gasped, "Holy shit you guys!" She was slurring her words, "It's like 11:00! That's so late!" Joe laughed, causing Lauren to shake on top of him. "Is little Lo Lo tired?" Joe asked, but Lauren had already fallen asleep. No one had any idea how she did that. She seemed to have a knack for falling asleep. One second she was there the next, she had drifted off. "Typical Lauren" Brolden chuckled. Joe stood up, carrying Lauren in his arms like a baby. "I'll put her to bed, I guess this party is coming to an end." Everyone suddenly realized how tired they really were and everyone slowly left while Jamie cleaned up. Joe had just put Lauren down to bed when she mumbled, "Thanks Joe, I knew you would fall for it." Joe smiled and laughed to himself as he shut the door. Joe looked at Jamie, "She tricked me!" Without even looking up Jamie responded, "I know, she's lazy like that." Joe just shook his head and left, unaware that it would be a long time until he saw his friend again.


	2. Chapter 2- missing

**A/N: I would really like if you guys could review, I don't really know where this story is going but it would be helpful if you guys could give me feedback. Thanks! -Aheartfulloffandoms**

The next morning, Jamie didn't see Lauren. Sure, Lauren liked to sleep in, but never this much. It was worrying Jamie. She decided to go check on her friend. She went into Lauren's room, expecting to find her asleep in some obscure position, but she wasn't there. Jamie looked around the apartment but she guessed that Lauren must have woken up early for once. Of course she forgot her phone though, typical Lauren. Looking at her watch Jamie realized that she had to get to rehearsal, it was supposed to start in 15 minutes. When Jamie got there, she didn't see Lauren. She just shrugged it off, obviously she would be late, she normally was anyway. But well into the meeting Lauren still hadn't shown up. During the quick break they were taking, Joe walked over to Jamie. "Hey Jamie! Where's Lauren?" He look a little worried himself

"I don't know, she wasn't there when I woke up, so I guess she got up early and went somewhere, she left her phone at home though."

"Hmmm.." Joe began fidgeting his hands the way he did whenever he was nervous. "I'm sure she'll turn up eventually, she probably just forgot about rehearsal." Joe didn't sound too convinced though.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Jamie turned to walk back to the group but Joe grabbed her arm.

"Jamie?"

"Yeah Walker?"

"Could you, maybe text me when you figure out what happened to Lauren? You know, just so I know?"

"No problem Walker," Jamie smiled and they went back to the group together. Joe was having a hard time focusing on rehearsals, his mind was on Lauren. He was worried about her, he knew she was probably fine, and he was probably over reacting, but he didn't want Lauren to get hurt. He had loved Lauren ever since they met in college on the first day of class. He had come late, and the only empty seat was between Lauren and Darren. They had all become friends so fast, but Joe had always thought of her as so much more. He knew from the moment he laid eyes on her that he was in love with her. He remembered the dark times of Sophomore year when Lauren started dating Brian H. It had been so hard for Joe to watch her happy with someone else, let alone his best friend. Those 4 months that they dated for were agony for Joe. When they finally broke up it felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Now, just the thought of the possibility that Lauren might be in any sort of danger made Joe want to vomit. He just went on with rehearsal though, praying that Lauren was fine.

That night when Jamie got home, Lauren still wasn't there, but there was a note on the coffee table. She could have sworn that the note wasn't there that morning. She hoped it would be an explanation from Lauren but she had no such luck. The note was typed, but creased in many places, as if someone had folded it carefully to fit into their pocket. It said:

_Sweet Jamie, _

_Surely you've noticed by now that Lauren isn't here, that was my doing. Now, don't worry, she is unharmed, for now, but if you don't follow my instructions, little Lauren here will feel the pain. I am watching you, and I will know if you tell anyone. As far as your friends are concerned, Lauren is sick and doesn't want to see anyone. My first request is that you be a dear and cause some havoc. I want a relationship ruined. And I think you know which one I'm talking about. But just in case, look at the back._

_-Your old friend, RR_

Jamie flipped the note over, even though she already knew what she would find. There was a drawing of a broken heart, on side had _BH _written on it and the other side said _MS. _"Meredith and Brian," Jamie whispered to herself. She sat on the couch and read the note over and over again, tears running down her face. She prayed that this was all some joke, that it was just one of her friends playing a prank on her. But even just thinking that to herself she didn't believe it. Suddenly her phone buzzed. It scared Jamie, and she jumped a little. I was a text from Joe. It read: _Hey, is Lauren ok?_ Jamie held her face in her hands, she didn't want to lie to Walker, but what other choice did she have. She texted back: _Yeah, she went to the doctor without telling anyone, she's just a little sick._ Joe responded almost immediately: _That's good, tell her I said I hope she feels better._ Jamie sighed and ran to her room and found an old shoe box and put the note in it. She wanted to have all the notes if she ever went to the police about this. She then went to bed, only to lie restlessly, dreading what she would be forced to do.


	3. Chapter 3- trapped

**A/N: So this chapter is a look at what is happening to Lauren, and basically every few chapters there will be a chapter like this. Just tell me if you like this and I will try to post a good balance of Lauren and Jamie chapters.**

Lauren woke up in a small dark room. The only source of light was a single hanging lightbulb in the middle of the room. Her hands were chained behind her back with heavy metal handcuffs. Those handcuffs were then connected to the wall by a huge chain. The metal cuffs were on too tight, and she could feel them digging into her wrists. The room was empty, except for a metal table underneath the lightbulb. It seemed to have objects on it but Lauren couldn't tell what they were. She had no idea how she got there, or how long she had been there. The last memory she had before waking up was of Joe, holding her in his arms. He was carrying her somewhere, she couldn't remember where, but she wished she could return to that embrace. There was an echoing pain in her head, so she guessed she must have been knocked out to be brought there. She waited for how long, she didn't know, before a figure came in finally. The figure was dressed in all black, they even had black gloves on. They kept their face shielded and walked over to Lauren quickly. She couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman. their figure was large, but they didn't seem large enough to be a large man. They had on a hood and a mask. The mask was all white, and covered the person's whole face except for their mouth. "Where am I ?" Lauren asked, looking around trying to find a way out. "Bitch." the figure muttered under their breath. They then proceeded to kick Lauren in the gut. "Who are you?" Lauren whimpered, doubling over in pain. "Does it even matter?" The voice was harsh-sounding, but it wasn't one Lauren recognized. Lauren stayed quiet, keeping her eyes on the floor. The person punched her in the face. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that." It said. A tear slid out of Lauren's eye and the person laughed maliciously. "Welcome to your new home." Lauren dared not to move a muscle, she just imagined Joe's arms around her. The tears were steadily flowing from her eyes now, and she had no control over them. The person leaned down, looking down on Lauren. Lauren was too afraid to look up. "Awww, is little Lolo crying?" The person went over to the table and seemed to be choosing an item. They finally returned with a long, slender knife, that gleamed maliciously in the dim light. Lauren tried to back away, but just ran into the wall. The figure grabbed her by the neck and forced her to look up. Lauren looked through the eye holes of the mask and saw a pair of blue eyes staring back at her. She knew them from somewhere, but she couldn't place them with a face. "I like when people look at me when i'm talking. got that?" They pulled the knife up in front of Lauren's eyes, taunting her with it. Lauren nodded and swallowed, trying to move her head away from the blade. She could tell the person was smiling at her, maybe even laughing in their head. "Afraid of a little knife now are we Lolo?" Lauren didn't speak, she just wanted to get away from that knife. They brought the knife up to her cheek, dragging it slowly along her cheek leaving a straight trail of blood. Lauren winced as it went along, tears rolling out of her eyes. "ohh, does that hurt? I'm so sorry!" The person stabbed the knife into the wall, scraping the side of Lauren's head. They slapped her in the face before going leaving the room, slamming the door. At that moment Lauren just wished that she could die, that she could drift away and never come back. She collapsed on to the floor and stared at the door. So she just stayed there, eventually she fell asleep. She was back home all of a sudden, sitting in her and Jamie's apartment, she was lying on the couch, and watching a movie. Her head was resting in Joe's lap and he was playing with her hair absent-mindedly. She smiled. He looked down at her, "Oh, so your awake." He chuckled a bit."yeah, I had a terrible dream though." She smiled at Joe, who brushed a stray hair out of her face, "It's alright, it's all over now." She sat up and hugged Joe tight, and he held her closely. "You're here with me now." She smiled, but then there was a loud thud, Joe the world around her was fading and Joe was lost in the darkness. And suddenly, she was back.


	4. Chapter 4- How to Destroy a Relationship

**A/N: So sorry that this took so long to get up! I had a huge paper due for school so that took up most of my writing time! Good news is, the newest chapter for A Very Starkid Vacay should be up within the next week and the next update for this story will be in around a week or two! **

Jamie woke up the next morning hoping that the whole incident with Lauren had been a dream. She ran over to her closet where she had put the box. She pulled away her pile of shirts and behind them, there was the box. "Shit." She muttered under her breath. She looked at the note and sighed. "Break up Brian and Mere? How the hell am I gonna do that?" She thought to herself. She stuffed the note back into the box and hid the box again. As she walked into the kitchen, she noticed a small yellow envelope taped to the fridge. She sighed, she didn't want to go anywhere near that note. But she did anyway, she knew she had to. In the envelope there were 5 pieces of paper. The first was a note. It said:

_Jamie,_

_Having trouble with your job I gave you? Here's a little something to help you along. I want them broken up by Friday, or else. Inside this envelope I've also included a little "motivation" incase you don't think you want to go through with this. Have fun!_

_-RR_

_P.S. Don't even think about going to the police about this, or I will make Lauren suffer so much she will wish she were dead._

Tears flowed down Jamie's cheeks as she set the note aside. She covered her face with her hands and cried. She just wanted Lauren back. It was already Tuesday, she had no idea how she would be able to break Brian and Meredith up in time. Next she pulled out a picture, it was of Lauren and she looked awful. She had cuts and bruises all over her body and her hands were chained behind her back. Her eyes were shut tightly like she was in pain. She seemed like she was unconscious though, her body was limp even though her face was tightly wound in agony. Her normally bright, tan face was pale, She had a black eye and her lip was bleeding. It killed Jamie to see her best friend in so much pain like that. But the only way she could help Lauren would be by hurting Brian and Meredith. They way things were going, she was afraid to look at the last 3 pieces of paper. More pictures. She took out the first one. It was a picture of Lauren and Brian talking at some party, it was impossible to tell when the picture was taken. The next picture was of them hugging and the last picture was of them kissing! Jamie was shocked. She couldn't believe that Brian would cheat on Meredith, they seemed so happy together. She took the letter and the picture of Lauren and hid them in the box in her closet. She then put the 3 pictures back in the envelope and put it in her bag She looked at the clock and saw that she was late, so she rushed out the door to rehearsal for their newest show, Starship.

Jamie rushed into rehearsal as some people were on stage rehearsing a scene. She smiled, but everyone could see that she was distraught. While Brian was practicing his scene with Joey at the end of the show. Joe ran walked over to Jamie. "How's Lauren?" He asked.

"Not any better, she still really sick, she can't even get out of bed." Joe looked upset.

"So I can't come over and see her?" He asked, looking disheartened.

"No," she sighed, "That probably wouldn't be a good idea."

"Well, tell her I said feel better!" He smiled and she smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"I will." Jaime knew he could see right through her smile, but at this point, she really didn't care. She looked on stage as Joe left and saw that they were starting the scene where the starship rangers were first introduced to the audience. Brian was filling in for Lauren as Taz. Joey had just finished his scene and he came over and sat next to Jamie where she was going over her lines. He watched her for a minute. "Hey." He said

"Hey" she didn't look up.

"Are you ok? You seem kinda upset?"

"Don't worry about me, taking care of Lauren has kind of wiped me out is all." She looked up.

"Oh, well I could, umm you know come and help you out if you want."

"Thanks, but I think I'm alright."

"If you say so," He shrugged and sighed. She went back to her lines and he took a deep breath. "Hey, umm Jamie?" he moved a little closer.

"Yeah?" she looked up again.

"I was wondering if maybe... umm... you might wanna catch a movie with me sometime?" He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants.

"Joey Ritcher, are you asking me out on a date?" She seemed to have been shaken awake.

"Yes...No...do you want me to be asking you out on a date?"

"Of course I'll go on a date with you!" She laughed and he looked relieved. At least one thing was going right for her today.

As she went back to her lines she listened to what was happening on stage. Sure, Brian was funny, but he couldn't pull off the role like Lauren could. And yeah, it was funny watching other people trying to play Lauren's part, but everyone could tell that it just didn't feel right without her. While Meredith was on stage, Jamie slipped the envelope into her purse.

At the end of rehearsal, Jamie left quickly, saying that she had to take care of Lauren. "Well, she rushed out of here." Meredith said to Brian, grabbing her purse.

"Yeah, Lo must be really sick," Brian put his arm around her and they headed outside.

"Come on, let's go back to my place and we can watch a movie." Meredith said, taking Brian's hand as they walked down the street towards Meredith's apartment.

Brian sat on the couch and searched Netflix for a good movie, while Meredith made popcorn in the kitchen. Her phone buzzed and she went to get it from her purse to check it. While searching her purse, she found a strange envelope that hadn't been there that morning. She walked into the living room holding up the envelope, "Hey Bri, do you know what this is?"

"No, I've never seen it before," He shook his head and she shrugged. She sat next to him and he put his arm around her. She opened the envelope and looked inside. There were three pieces of paper. She pulled them out. "Pictures," she said to herself. She looked at the first and second ones. "They're of you and Lauren at some party." She said, and Brian craned his neck to look,"Wait pictures of what?" he asked and she looked at the second picture.

"I'm not sure, but this one's just you and Lo hugging." She looked at the last picture and he jaw dropped, he laid back expression turned into an expression of extreme pain and anger. "Brian, what the fuck is this and when was it taken!?" She yelled

"I don't know! I don't remember kissing Lauren since we dated in college!"

"Oh, so you were drunk and cheating!?" Meredith shook his arm off of her shoulder and stood.

"No, babe, that's probably a picture from college!" Brian stood, trying to calm Meredith.

"Probably!? Bri, that's the shirt I bought you for your birthday this year!" She stormed over to the door and held it open. "I want you out! Right now!" She yelled. He tried to reason with her but she wouldn't hear it. As he walked down the hallway she stepped out and yelled after him, "We are OVER Brian Holden! OVER!" She slammed the door and the tears began. She looked over to her phone and the text that started it all. It was from Jaime:

_Guess what!? Joey just asked me out! Now maybe you and Bri can double date with us!_

Meredith just couldn't handle it anymore, she sunk to the ground and broke down in tears. She finally decided to text Jamie back after she had gotten most of the tears out.

_Sorry to crush your dreams of double dates, but I just broke up with Bri._

She sighed as a tear rolled down her cheek and she wondered what would happen next.


	5. Chapter 5- a Torturous existence

** Chapter 5- A Torturous Existence.**

**A/N: Heyyyyyyyy I know I took forever to post this, but I have exams coming up and I'm suuuuuuuuuuuper busy. I've been writing chapters by hand in class, and then later transferring them to my computer so this is a long pcess for me. I have the next two chapters of my other fic, A Very Starkid Vacay, written, just not transferred, so those should be up as soon as I can find the time. Again so sorry about the wait, but here's another Lauren chapter!**

Lauren woke to the sound of a metal dish clattering on the floor. the figure stood over her and kicked the dish at her. The edge of the dish hit her and left a small cut just above her eyebrow. When she whimpered in pain, the figure pointed to the disgusting slop in the dish. "Eat up, thats your food for the week, if you're lucky, you might get some more in a few days." All of a sudden Lauren was aware of the sharp pain in her stomach. She had no idea how long she had been here, but she did know that she hadn't eaten since before her arrival. But whatever brown mush was in the dish was not in anyway appetizing to her. She turned her head away from the foul smell, then pushed herself up into a sitting position against the wall. "Not hungry? Hmm, well that's fine, this is all you get for the week, you'll come around eventually." The person knelt down to Lauren's level, and she could see their cold blue eyes. For a second, she almost thought she recognized the eyes, but the flash of recognition was gone in a split second. She didn't know what made her do it, but all of a sudden, she spit in her captor's face. It didn't get through to their face, but it had made them significantly more angry. "Let. Me. Go." Lauren spoke slowly, with more intensity and anger than she ever had felt in her life. The person just laughed, which made Lauren want to punch them in the face even more. She struggled against the chains to no avail. "Oh don't even try." They said, but Lauren kept fighting. Her captor rushed over and slapped Lauren across the face, she slumped over against the wall, cheek stinging. "You'd better listen to me when I'm talking." The figure then grabbed Lauren by her hair and held her up against the wall. She squirmed and tried to escape their grip, but she was only hurting herself more. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and even though she couldn't see the face behind the mask, she could have sworn that they were smiling at her pain. "What do you want!" She screamed, desperate. Her captor threw her down against the wall and slapped her again. "I want a lot of things," they said, standing up straight. They walked over to the table and looked over it, searching for the proper device. "Seeing you suffer was first on my list, and now that wish is coming true!" They let out a sinister laugh that made Lauren shiver. "I want Meredith and Brian both crushed, almost beyond repair, so that I can swoop in and save the day! I want Jamie driven completely to insanity! And my favorite thing that I want, I want Joe to suffer this heartbreak forever, and see how it feels to lose what matters most to you in this world. There's so much more that I want, but i don't want to bore you with that. We need to get down to business." They turned around, holding a long menacing looking spiked whip. Lauren whimpered and pressed her back against the wall. "Please, don't" her voice was high and quiet with fear. Her captor just walked closer slowly and laughed. "Alright little Lolo, where should we start?" They grabbed her chin, and tilted it upwards, so that she could look right into those menacing, familiar eyes. They threw her down onto her stomach and then lifted the whip. Lauren screamed in agony as the whip was brought down on her back numerous times. Her shirt was ripped and soaked with blood already. Tears streamed down her face, and with every strike of the whip, she let out a small cry of agony. The pain only got worse and worse and her captor seemed to be enjoying themselves. "Please! No more!" Lauren yelled with her little strength. And to her surprise, the person stopped. "Awww, am I hurting little Lauren?" They said in a mocking way. "I guess we'll just have to try something else. The person dragged the whip across her cheek, leaving a trail of blood as she whimpered in pain. They then grabbed something else off the table and put the bloody whip down. She held up a small key. The key was about the size of Lauren's index finger. it was old and rusty, just like the chains digging into her wrists. "This is the key to those chains around your wrists. If you can get it, then you can take those nasty chains off." They smirked. "But you'll never get it." They dropped the key in the far corner of the room, before walking to the door. But they stopped suddenly and turned. "Wow, its only been three days! Think of all the fun we still can have together!" And with that they ducked out the door. Lauren struggled against the chains, she pulled as close as she could to the key, but she was not even close. Tears stung at her eyes, she wished that this was all some horrible, twisted nightmare. She tried pinching herself, but nothing happened. She curled into a ball and looked at the food dish lying on the floor. "Three days," she said to herself, "I haven't eaten in three days." She tried to decide whether or not it was worth it to eat the food. She dragged herself over to the dish and looked at the slop inside. it looked awful, but she sighed and bent over, taking a small bite. She didn't know what the hell it could be, but it was horrible. She gagged, but eventually swallowed it down. She didn't know if she could eat anymore. So she went back to lying in a ball on the floor and slowly she drifted off.

She was sitting on the couch, drinking hot chocolate with Jamie, and they were watching a christmas movie. They had just put up the tree and were letting it fall before they decorated it. They were watching their favorite movie, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Lauren ate a marshmallow from her mug and smiled. Marshmallows were one of her favorite foods. They sat next to each other, enjoying the movie, when there was a knock on the door. Lauren got up and opened it. Standing there, holding a candy cane and a small bouquet of red and white roses, was Joe Walker. "Joe" She said, and he just smiled. "Hey Lo." he sounded nervous. "Umm... I really didn't think this through, I just came by to tell you that you don't know hold long i've loved you. I've loved you since the day we met. And, well, what I'm trying to say is, uhh, would you maybe want to go on a date with me sometime?" After he finished, he smiled a little and held out the flowers and candy cane. She smiled. "I would love to go on a date with you!" She leaned in and kissed him and it was the happiest moment of her life. As she pulled away, Joe looked down in horror. She followed his gaze to a pool of blood forming on his shirt surrounding the tip of a blade sticking out of his stomach. She screamed and grabbed Joe, supporting him, as he collapsed to the ground. She held him in her arms, and watched as the life drained from his eyes. She cried and buried her face in his chest, sobbing. She looked up and saw his killer standing in the doorway. That horrible thing, it wasn't even a person, it was the one who had kidnapped her. The one who had tortured her and done unspeakable things to her. She screamed at them, she got up and ran over to them, but when she went to hit them, her fists just passed through their body, as if they were a ghost. She screamed and yelled, but the sounds were caught in her throat. She sunk to the ground and cried, her body wracked with sobs. She looked around and she saw that her apartment, her life, and everything she knew was melting away. But she was frozen in time, screams stuck in her throat, movements stopped before they could be carried out. Suddenly her entire body jerked forward without warning and she was back in hell. "Great, out of one nightmare, and into another." She sighed. Her entire body was covered in sweat and her ankle was throbbing. She was pretty sure that she had kicked a wall in her sleep. She was a mess of sweat and tears. She wished that she could just drop dead when she saw the figure appear in the doorway once again, and she heard that sickening laugh.


	6. Chapter 6- comfort and chaos

**It has been wayyyyy too long and I'm really sorry about that. Between exams and the longest case of writers' block ever, I just haven't been able to write much. But I've ****finally finished! YAY! I'm still trying to decide if I should continue my other Team SK fic, A Very Starkid Vacay, so any opinions on that are totally open. I'm uploading this chapter for the second time because something glitched out with my computer and the chapter was filled with weird code, but I think I've fixed it! **

**~aheartfulloffandoms**

* * *

When Jaime got the text from Meredith she felt like a terrible person. She felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach when she realized that she had destroyed a relationship. It made it even worse that she had destroyed a relationship between two of her best friends. But at the same time, she felt slightly relieved. Maybe she had just saved Lauren from more suffering, at least, she hoped that she had.

But now, she was barely eating or sleeping, she was extremely stressed. The dark circles under her eyes were getting harder and harder to hide. People were beginning to notice her shift in behavior. She was far less energetic and less positive than normally. Joe seemed to especially be noticing the change, on account of the fact that he asked Jaime about Lauren just about every five seconds. Day in day out, Jaime worried about Lauren. She could never shake the feeling of emptiness that Lauren's absence caused her.

It had only been 5 days now, since Lauren had been taken and two days since Brian and Meredith broke up. She and Joey had planned their date for Friday, which was in two days. Brian had been especially grumpy and hard to be around. Their group was falling apart bit by bit, and it was all Jaime's fault, well kind of. Jaime felt a kind of responsibility for this whole thing, and she felt that it would be her job to set it right. She knew that she had to tell someone, someone who would keep it quiet, and help Jaime fix things. She immediately thought of telling Joe, since he was so worried about Lauren, and she would have to tell him eventually. But she worried that he wouldn't take the news so well and freak out. Her next thought was to tell either Julia or Dylan, since they were both good in times of crisis. She wondered what would be better, Dylan's calm fatherly advice, or Julia's possessive mothering. Eventually she decided that Dylan would be the best one to tell, and that all she needed was some of Dylan's fatherly advice and a hug. She she found him after rehearsals and pulled him aside. They walked to a little cafe and sat in the back corner, drinking coffee. "Dyl, thank you so much for this, you have no idea happy I am that you're here." He looked a little confused but he still smiled.

"Really, it's no problem, so what's up?" She leaned in slightly and sighed.

"Dylan, what I'm about to tell you must stay between you and me only, you can't tell anyone." He nodded and she kept going, "Look, Dyl, it's all my fault, Brian and Mere." She held back tears and he looked like he was going to say something, but she stopped him. "Anyway, I should start by telling you the truth about Lauren, she's not actually sick," Dylan looked confused, "Lauren was kidnapped five days ago, and I've been getting these notes from her kidnapper, telling me what to do if I want to keep Lauren safe. They told me not to tell anyone but I can't hold it in anymore. And a couple of days ago, they left me a note with all these pictures in it, one of Lauren all beat up, and the others were pictures of Brian and Lauren that caused the break up, And I hate this, and I just want Lauren back, and i just want it all to stop!" She was now sobbing and Dylan pulled her into a hug. She cried into his shoulder for a while before he pulled away and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Jaime, you should have told everyone." She just cried harder.

"That's the thing! They told me if I told anyone, they'd hurt Lauren! But I couldn't keep it in anymore and now Lauren's going to get even more hurt!"

"Hey Jaime, hey, it's all going to be ok, they aren't going to hurt Lauren anymore. We're gonna get her back, I know you don't want the police involved, so why don't you set up a camera in your apartment, in case they try to get in again." Jaime nodded. "I have an old camera at my apartment, I can bring it to your place tomorrow or something, ok?" She nodded and he walked her home.

Once they were back at Jaime's apartment, and Jaime had locked the door, they noticed the envelope on the table. Jaime stared at it, frozen in place, and Dylan took a moment to process the situation. After a minute, Jaime picked up the envelope and opened it. She pulled the first note out and read it.

_Jaime, great job with Brian and Meredith! My inside sources tell me that it was a very messy breakup filled with resentment! It's exactly as I had hoped! You've done well, and Lauren sends her love! I will send the next task tonight. -RR_

A tear rolled down Jaime's cheek as she put the note to the side and pulled out another note.

_I told you not to tell -RR_

She pulled out the last paper and gasped out loud. The paper was a photo of Lauren. She had her eyes squeezed shut and her shirt was ripped and soaked in blood. She was lying on her stomach with her face turned to the side so that Jaime could see a large gash on her cheek. Her back was covered in large gashes and cuts. Dylan stared at the image in shock. "Jaime, we have to go to the police, we can't let this keep happening." Jaime shook her head, tears streamed down her cheeks.

"No, if we do, then Lauren will just be hurt even more." Dylan sighed.

"Jaime, if we can't get Lauren back in less than 2 weeks, we have to go to the police, ok? We have to do something." Jaime just nodded as Dylan pulled her into a hug, letting her cry into his chest.

"Hey Dyl, could you maybe stay here tonight, I'm kind of scared." Dylan smiled.

"Sure thing Jaime Lyn. I will stay up all night if I have to, we'll get Lauren back, don't you worry. You'll see, it will all be ok." He squeezed her tight before pulling away.

"Thanks Dylan." She said.

After locking all of the doors and windows, closing all the curtains and double checking all the closets, under all the beds and in every hiding space Jaime could think of, Jaime was finally able to relax a little. She made popcorn and they sat down to watch a movie. Eventually, after a long argument, Jaime convinced Dylan to watch Mean Girls, one of her favorite movies. And even though he complained, Dylan secretly enjoyed it. They cuddled, which made Jaime feel weird and safe at the same time. It wasn't any sort of romantic cuddling, it was like platonic cuddling, and Jaime felt like Dylan could just shield her from all her problems. After the movie, they talked for a while, trying to stay awake. They tried to avoid topics like Lauren, Brian, Meredith or anything else linked to the kidnapping. They talked about their hometowns, and high school. It made Jaime wish that she could just go back to New York and escape all of this drama. Hearing Dylan talk about San Francisco made her start to wish that she was anywhere but where she was, worrying about normal things, not this crazy shit.

"Hey, could you tell me a story about San Francisco? Just any long story?" She asked and he smiled and launched into a long story about one Christmas when he was ten and his entire huge family was in town. As she listened to Dylan talk about his huge out of control family, she started to drift in between being awake and asleep. Slowly, she drifted off to sleep, away from the hell that she was trapped in.

When she woke up, Dylan wasn't where he had been when she fell asleep. She looked around but she didn't see him anywhere, "Dyl?" She said, standing up. She walked into the kitchen and saw him, lying on the ground, a pool of blood had formed, coming from a gash on the top of his head. Jaime gasped and ran over to him, checking for a pulse. Thankfully, he was still alive and breathing. There was a post-it note next to him, stuck to a large envelope. She grabbed the note, which was short and to the point.

_He was too close._

That was all the note said. A tear rolled down her cheek and she fell onto her hands and knees. She felt so defeated. There was no way that she could protect her friends and it was completely clear to her now that she had to get through this alone. She grabbed the phone and dialled 911. "911, what's your emergency?" a woman's voice answered the phone.

"My friend hit his head at some point in the night and he's still breathing but he won't wake up and I don't know how long he's been there but he's been bleeding a lot and-" She was shaking uncontrollably and speaking rapidly when she was cut off by the 911 operator.

"Mam, just stay calm and we will have an ambulance come to help you as soon as possible." Jaime thanked the woman and hung up when her eyes fell upon the envelope. She grabbed it and opened it. Inside was a single note.

_The stakes are higher than ever, successfully complete your new task and 1) Lauren will be fed "real human food" as opposed to the dog food she's used to getting once a week currently. 2) One "special" Starkid in my sights will be allowed to live with only minor injury. I almost forgot to tell you your task! You have exactly one week to get 5,000 dollars, I don't care how, and leave it for me in the rosebush across the street from your apartment building. You know which one I'm talking about. Get the money to me in exactly a week and everything will go over smoothly. Bail on me, and things WILL get messy._

_-RR_

Jaime gasped and shoved the letter into her shoebox after reading it over a few more times just to be sure that she had read it correctly. She let the tears fall as she sunk to her knees beside Dylan, completely unsure of what to do next. There was no way she would be able to raise 5,000 dollars in only a week! She didn't have much money in her bank account and she had no idea how to get that much money in such a short period of time. She heard the sirens of the ambulance off in the distance, and knew that she couldn't let anyone know about the note. Hurriedly, she stuffed the note into the box just before the paramedics rushed into her apartment. She explained to them what had happened, how she had woken up and found him lying there, and they quickly put him on a stretcher and brought him to the ambulance.

"Miss, you can come with him if you want, there's room in the ambulance." one of the paramedics had tapped Jaime on the shoulder and she smiled slightly, nodding.

"Thank you. But, could you just give me one minute? I should grab my purse." He nodded and she rushed into her room, grabbing the letters and her phone and wallet, and putting them into her bag. Things had been taken too far, she had decided it was about time she did something about this mess.

* * *

**I just want to make something clear about the timeline. This chapter starts on Wednesday, and ends on Thursday.**


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